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Take a peek at the International Orangutan Center

The Indianapolis Zoo invited media to a sneak peek this morning of its new International Orangutan Center, scheduled to open Memorial Day weekend, and to watch its auburn occupants in their new home, a stunning new $21.5 million exhibit space that's larger than two NFL football fields.

Take a peek at the International Orangutan Center

Katy is a quick learner, observant and sometimes shy, according to the Indianapolis Zoo's website. She came to the zoo's new International Orangutan Center in 2010. She was born Dec. 18, 1988, and weighs 130 pounds.(Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)Buy Photo

The Indianapolis Zoo invited media representatives Thursday to take a sneak peek at its new International Orangutan Center, scheduled to open to the public on Memorial Day weekend.

The press brought cameras, lots of them, and the orangutans, their natural curiosity.

Mark Haney, Indianapolis, holds his 5-year-old son Landon up to the viewing window to get a close look at Azy, one of the eight orangutans in the Indianapolis Zoo's new Simon Skjodt Orangutan Center, which held the first of three previews for zoo members on Wednesday, May 21, 2014. Two more will be held on Thursday and Friday afternoons before the Center opens to the public Saturday morning. (Photo: Charlie Nye/The Star)

Indianapolis Zoo members stand in long lines in front of observation windows inside the new Simon Skjodt Orangutan Center to get a preview look at orangutans in the day room on Wednesday, may 21, 2014. It was the first of three member previews before Saturday's opening to the public. (Photo: Charlie Nye/The Star)

Claire Vaught, almost 3, Boggstown, is reflected in an observation window inside the Indianapolis Zoo's new Simon Skjodt Orangutan Center, which held the first of three previews for zoo members on Wednesday, May 21, 2014. (Photo: Charlie Nye/The Star)

Who's watching who? An orangutan pictured on signage in the plaza outside the new Simon Skjodt Orangutan Center appears to be observing one of the visitors during the Indianapolis Zoo's first of three member previews on Wednesday, May 21, 2014. (Photo: Charlie Nye/The Star)

Indianapolis Zoo members excitedly watch as Lucy, one of the eight orangutans in the zoo's new Simon Skjodt Orangutan Center, climbs down from a perch in the day room of the center on the first of three preview days for zoo members on Wednesday, May 21, 2014. (Photo: Charlie Nye/The Star)

The Indianapolis Zoo held the first of three member previews on Wednesday, May 21, 2014 for its new Simon Skjodt Orangutan Center. Two more will be held on Thursday and Friday afternoons before the Center opens to the public Saturday morning. (Photo: Charlie Nye/The Star)

Indianapolis Zoo members got a preview look -- the first of three member previews before Saturday's opening to the public -- of the new Simon Skjodt Orangutan Center. Here, visitors peer into the day room of the center. (Photo: Charlie Nye/The Star)

The Indianapolis Zoo held the first of three member previews on Wednesday, May 21, 2014 for its new Simon Skjodt Orangutan Center. Two more will be held on Thursday and Friday afternoons before the Center opens to the public Saturday morning. (Photo: Charlie Nye/The Star)

The Indianapolis Zoo held the first of three member previews on Wednesday, May 21, 2014 for its new Simon Skjodt Orangutan Center. Two more will be held on Thursday and Friday afternoons before the Center opens to the public Saturday morning. (Photo: Charlie Nye/The Star)

Lucy at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger / The Star)

Nicky at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger / The Star)

Azy at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger / The Star)

Rocky at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger)

Rocky at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger / The Star)

The International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger / The Star)

Rocky at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger / The Star)

Katy at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger / The Star)

Azy at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger / The Star)

The International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger / The Star)

Azy likes to cover himself with a sheet when he wants to rest, according to the Indianapolis Zoo website. He also likes opening boxes with treats inside at the new International Orangutan Center at the zoo. (Photo: Danese Kenon/The Star)

The Indianapolis Orangutans meet the press Thursday, March 20, 2014 at the new exhibit at The Indianapolis Zoo. The International Orangutan Center cost $21.5 million and is larger than two NFL football fields. (Photo: Danese Kenon/The Star)

Knobi is one of the inhabitants at the Indianapolis Zoo's new International Orangutan Center. The exhibit's eight orangutans got to meet the local media Thursday morning at the zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Rocky, a new inhabitant at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo, is described as high energy, very social and playful. He was born Sept. 25, 2004, and weighs 105 pounds, according to the zoo's website. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Nicky, described as sweet and calm, came to the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo after spending much of her life in private ownership in the entertainment industry. She was born on July 1, 1984, and weighs 127 pounds, according to the zoo website. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Rocky came to the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo in 2010. He spent much of his life in the entertainment industry and at one time was the most seen orangutan in commercials, movies and other media, according to the zoo's website. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Katy is a quick learner, observant and sometimes shy, according to the Indianapolis Zoo's website. She came to the zoo's new International Orangutan Center in 2010. She was born Dec. 18, 1988, and weighs 130 pounds. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Rocky (left) is the biological son of Katy, but they were separated when he was very young before being reunited at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. They are forming a playful relationship as they spend time together, according to the zoo's website. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Nicky came to the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo in November 2013. She has developed good social skills with the other seven orangutans in the exhibit. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Azy was born Dec. 14, 1977, and weighs 250 pounds, according to the Indianapolis Zoo's website. He came to theInternational Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo in 2010. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Rocky swings from the vines at the International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. He was raised by humans and was 3-and-a-half years old when he began living with other orangutans. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Nicky meets the local media on Thursday, March 20, 2014, at the new International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo. The official opening of the center will be on Memorial Day weekend. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Azy came to the Indianapolis Zoo in 2010 from the Great Ape Trust in Des Moines, Iowa. He has an arm span of 9 feet from fingertip to fingertip, according to the zoo's website. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

Azy "has all of the physical features that make him an exceptionally attractive adult male orangutan," according to the Indianapolis Zoo website. Those features include long hair, cheek pads and a long beard. (Photo: Matt Kryger/The Star)

A little kiss between orangutans on Thursday, March 20, 2014, at the new exhibit at The Indianapolis Zoo. The International Orangutan Center cost $21.5 million and is larger than two NFL football fields. (Photo: Danese Kenon/The Star)

The Indianapolis Zoo's website says Azy has undergone cognitive testing and participated in studies of tool use and quantity judgment. He is one of eight orangutans in the newInternational Orangutan Center. (Photo: Danese Kenon/The Star)

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Katy, Knobi and Rocky moseyed right up to the window and peered intently into visitors' eyes. Their noses formed condensation on the glass, the only thing that separated the two species.

Such close encounters with the center's auburn occupants are just part of what will make a visit to the $26 million center so special.

"I can't think of another facility that rivals this one," said Rob Shumaker, vice president of conservation and life sciences for the zoo. "This is truly an exceptional facility." Shumaker has worked with orangutans for three decades.

Currently the space houses eight orangutans, but not all will necessarily be visible to the public at all times. The exhibit space, which is larger than two NFL football fields, also features areas where the animals can go when they desire some privacy.

For the past few weeks, the orangutans have been getting to know their new home. The first time they were in it, they were predictably cautious, with Azy, the oldest of the crew, leading the way, Shumaker said.

Only several inches of glass separate you and the orangutans in their new home at the Indianapolis Zoo.
Danese Kenon/The Star

Each animal has a diet designed for his or her nutritional needs, said senior keeper Lisa Goodwin. Some need extra fiber; one has to watch her intake because she has diabetes.

Duly fortified, the orangutans were ready to move.

And move they could, throughout the space. They climbed ladders to reach perches. They swung from side to side on large hoses. They could amble above the visitor space on an enclosed bridge that takes them to another exhibit space. They even ascended to hang from the atrium's ceiling, their forms silhouetted against the morning light.

Azy, the 36-year-old male with hair that resembles dreadlocks, even showed off his vocal talents, hooting as he ascended a ladder to let his compatriots know where he was heading.

A walkthrough of the new International Orangutan Center at the Indianapolis Zoo, which is scheduled to open May 24, 2014.
Michelle Pemberton/The Star

Once construction is complete, they will be able to traverse the Myrta Pulliam Hutan Trail — an outdoor network of cables, platforms and bridges that reaches 80 feet into the sky and is visible from various points Downtown.

When the exhibit opens, it will include The Skyline, an aerial cable ride that will allow visitors to get off the ground as well.

But don't expect it to look much like the rainforest, the habitat of orangutans in the wild in places such as Borneo or Sumatra.

The zoo's orangutans all were born in captivity or into the entertainment industry and would not be comfortable living deep in the rainforest.

Instead, these orangutans can use their muscles as they would in the wild with the ladders, ropes, hoses and cables.

"What we wanted to do was provide them all with a space that functions perfectly for their bodies," Shumaker said. "To me, the issue is not, 'Does it look like the forest?' but 'Does it function like it?'"

Stimulating the orangutans' minds is also key at the zoo.

The exhibit center includes rooms where scientists can work with orangutans, researching their cognitive abilities as the public watches.

Some orangutans enjoy finger painting or playing with computers, showing their number recognition or symbol recognition skills.

Orangutans eventually will control the lights on the Nina Mason Pulliam Beacon of Hope, a decorative 150-foot-high flourish on the center.

"The important thing is to keep them mentally challenged and healthy," Goodwin said.

Keeping them comfortable is also important. The architects took great care to take the needs of the orangutans into account when designing the building.

Watch people enter the space, press up close against the glass and make eye contact with an orang and the human, at least, is bound to smile, said architect Jonathan Hess of Indianapolis-based Browning Day Mullins Dierdorf Architects.

"It engages you, and the orangutan has the opportunity to engage you," he said.

The floors feature radiant heat, and the architects took care to minimize the glare from the windows, more from the animals' perspective than the humans, Hess said.

Two separate heating and cooling systems will help ensure both species are comfortable no matter the season; for instance, orangutans may be OK with a higher temperature in the summer and prefer more humidity in the winter.

But it turns out that even experts cannot anticipate every way to orangutan-proof an exhibit space.

Once the orangutans moved in, Rocky found a few strips of drywall that he could reach, Shumaker said. Those were taken care of.